GHAZIABAD: Opposite the Vijay Nagar home of 72-year-old Kamruddin, the alleged occultist accused of poisoning and killing three people in Delhi, lies a vacant plot where, neighbours say, he would often throw ritual offerings late at night — fruits, ashes, eggs, lemons, remnants of ceremonies — acts that left many uneasy long before his arrest.
"He would buy fruits in bulk, perform his rituals, and then discard everything in that plot. We told our children not to go near it," a neighbour recalled.
Yet in the same lane, the man, accused not only in the recent triple murder in Delhi but also in a double murder case in UP's Firozabad and one in Rajasthan in 2014, was revered as a healer to whom people turned for relief from kidney stones, chronic ailments and unexplained illnesses. Residents said for nearly a decade, cars would line the narrow approach road at all hours of the day and night, each carrying people seeking remedies he claimed to offer.
Elderly residents recalled a time when Kamruddin owned just a single, modest room on a small plot. Over roughly nine years, however, he steadily expanded his holdings, acquiring at least eight properties in the same lane. His home also housed Aarif Kirana Store, and the family ran multiple food businesses nearby: Bismillah Hotel on the ground floor of the building, Ali Food Corner right across, managed by his grandson, and another outlet, Ali Fast Food Point, in a neighbouring plot. Locals said the family also accumulated plots and a marriage hall in Firozabad.
A father of seven, Kamruddin lived with his wife in a room on the first floor of their Loni home. The ground level housed a small dargah-like shrine, where residents claim he conducted most of his rituals. People arrived without fixed appointments, neighbours said, often late into the night.
When TOI visited the lane, a small plastic box containing peeled orange segments and other remnants lay in the vacant plot, which neighbours claimed was once routinely littered with similar ritual leftovers. Some said their discomfort deepened after witnessing objects they associated with occult practices inside the house as well.
Naseema Khatoon, 60, recalled that her early interactions with Kamruddin were friendly. "When we first moved here, we would visit and talk like neighbours do," she said. "But one day, I saw what looked like a skull placed near the mazaar. After that, we stopped going there. Over time, many of us decided it was better to maintain distance."
She also alleged that during disputes, Kamruddin would sometimes invoke threats of black magic and take over the neighbouring plots, which she said intimidated some residents.
Yet, for many others in Vijay Nagar, Kamruddin was primarily known as a "peer", a spiritual healer whose outward life appeared very normal. His family members were seen running their shops and eateries, and leading routines similar to those of other residents.
Of his five sons, two — Shamshuddin and Raju — live in the same lane, while the others are based in Firozabad. One daughter also resides nearby. A neighbour said Raju earns his living driving an e-rickshaw, a detail some cite to question the extent of Kamruddin's claimed powers. "If he could truly create wealth, convert lakhs into crores or cure everything as people believed, you would expect his own household to look very different," Rizwan, a neighbour, said.
His wife Reshma said her family once approached Kamruddin when her infant son developed jaundice. "He performed a ritual using neem leaves when my child was six months old. To know now that he has killed someone, it is terrifying."
Kamruddin was preparing for the wedding of his grandson Ali, scheduled around Eid in March, and was seen by some as a soft-spoken elder focused on family and business. Raju's wife told TOI she was unaware of any alleged criminal involvement and knew him only as someone people visited for healing. She claimed most of her family members, including her husband, have been detained.
Police have taken Kamruddin to Firozabad, where he previously lived and allegedly duped several people. They are also probing the possible source of the poison and his contacts in the area. He is expected to be taken to other places from where he allegedly operated.
Police sources said during interrogation he showed no remorse over the killings in Delhi, in which the bodies of three people —Randhir, Shiv Naresh and Laxmi— were found. Investigators zeroed in on Kamruddin after analysing Laxmi's chats with another person, which provided key leads.
A source said Kamruddin uses a keypad phone and does not save any numbers, likely to avoid detection, and police suspect that he may have used a second handset that is now being traced. During analysis of his phone, officers found that he was in contact with several people and continued to receive calls from different numbers from individuals seeking his help. CCTV footage has also surfaced showing him walking along a street carrying something, and police are probing whether he was heading to board the car linked to the Peeragarhi case.
DCP (Outer) Sachin Sharma said evidence in the form of glasses, liquor bottles, car mats, cash and ID cards of victims have been collected from the car and forensic examination is being carried out.
Police have also conducted a psychological evaluation of the accused that lasted more than two hours. Investigators are now examining old receipts and property documents to map the full extent of plots he purchased and assess the scale of his accumulated wealth. Teams are searching for additional records and questioning property dealers in Loni and Firozabad to better understand his financial dealings and real estate holdings.
According to DCP Sharma, Kamruddin learnt the illegal practice of occult around the year 2010 in UP from his mentor. "His first known victim was a couple from Rajasthan. The woman was not able to conceive a child, so they contacted Kamruddin for ‘treatment'. On Kamruddin's instructions, the woman was killed by her husband," he said, adding that Kamruddin would often use besan laddoos and eggs for his rituals.
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